Trade request by Lemieux works for him & Blueshirts

Yes, the Rangers wanted to clear space on the roster and yes, the Rangers wanted to clear space under the cap.

But The Post has learned that the Rangers, in dealing Brendan Lemieux to the Kings for a fourth-round draft choice last Saturday, were also accommodating a request by the left winger’s camp that he be moved to a team on which he might gain a more meaningful role.

Lemieux, 25, had become locked into a fourth-line assignment in his third Rangers season, getting an average ice time of 10:13 per game, a full 2:29 less than the 12:52 he’d earned through 78 games in his previous year-plus as a Ranger.

Lemieux, always willing to come to the aid of his teammates, played a fair amount of top-six minutes immediately after joining the Rangers. That included power-play time as a net-front presence. His assignment shifted to steady third-line duty for the opening months of 2019-20, through which he was a prime agitator.

The fault line for Lemieux’s run with the Rangers came when he broke his thumb Dec. 27, 2019. When he returned three weeks later, Brett Howden had been moved from the middle to the wing and had usurped his spot on the third unit. So Lemieux played on the fourth line, the same assignment he carried this year in which he had seven points (2-5) in 31 games.

“[The trade] is going to give [Lemieux] an opportunity to maybe play in a little bit more of a role that he’s looking for,” head coach David Quinn said. “He was a good player for us and we’re going to miss him.”

➤ Igor Shesterkin was resolute in net once again in the Rangers’ 3-2 overtime victory in Buffalo on Thursday, despite yielding the tying goal with 3.6 seconds left on the regulation clock. The goaltender has a .930 save percentage and 2.13 goals-against average over 15 games since Jan. 28.

There seems little question he will get the call in Buffalo on Saturday. There seems no question the Rangers are ready to ride him to the finish line.

“I feel great and I am getting into the games much more easily,” said Shesterkin, who has shown no ill effects since returning last Thursday from the groin strain that sidelined him for 10 games and three weeks. “If the coach says I can play games, every game, then I will be ready 100 percent to help the team.”

➤ Howden cleared his cardiac exam in New York on Thursday and skated on his own at the club’s practice rink, but remained on the NHL’s COVID-protocol list for an 11th day. He will rejoin the Rangers when they return home following Saturday’s match.